Albrecht Bell-Striker (DnD Story)
From D&D Wiki
Albrecht was born in a mountain village bordering the Russ highlands in the era of the Phyzantine Empire. This Island Empire was located north and west of the Sargoss Sea. He was a true believer in the one true god Zenithar and payed homage to the various Angels and Martyrs that served the sleeping star child from it's crystal throne in the high heavens. He was a powerful man, who welded a mighty great flail which he used to knock acorns from the oaks trees in the fertile valleys of his homeland of Saxony so they might fall to the rich soil below and the village swine herds could feast. He also used his mighty flail to strike the cathedral's bells and gongs to remind the Saxon Villagers to attend Zenithar's mass during Moon day.
Albrecht was given many names by his village associates, The Bell striker, the Gong Beater, the Flagellant of Zenithar. It was said that he was adept at wielding his great flail and he would smash boulders into dust with but one mighty strike from his makeshift weapon.
There came a sad day, when his village was besieged. It started with the slaughtering of the shepherd's and their flocks of sheep, then came the pillaging of the cider breweries in the river valleys below. Finally one day a horde of one hundred orc raiders, bastards of the formorian giants in the lore of ancients... came to the gates of the village and demanded surrender... they demanded that the people be used as slave labor and breeding stock and they were given a week to surrender or be slaughtered to a man.
Albrecht the Bell-Striker told the fellow villagers to fortify the Cathedral, whose great oak doors and stout stone walls could withstand the siege. The remaining hogs and sheep slaughtered, their meat smocked and salted. The remaining rain water barrels, cider, dried cheese wheels and rations of bread and dry porridge where stored in the Cathedral's Larder. The villagers gathered their halberds and crossbows, smashed the windows of the church and fortified the great cathedral as best the can. Albrecht knew that he was to sacrifice himself to stop the horde of orcish raiders and he would.
On the seventh day, Gorm son of Orcus came through the village gates, riding atop his mighty worg, Fangrinder. Gorm demanded they surrender at the Cathedral but only Albrecht was seen in front of the mighty oak doors with his great flail in hand.
Gorm roared "What is this manling? Your lot refuses our requests? When we finish killing you We will slaughter you and your kin like sheep and burn this place to a Ground!"
Albrecht looked at Gorm and said "you and your kin will die before I succumb to my wounds. This village will be free of your tyranny!"
Gorm roared, his warriors charged, their hobnail boots thundering across the cobblestone roads and up the high stairs towards the cathedral. Albrecht could feel the earth rumble from so many brutish warriors surging forwards without any hesitance to rip him from limb to limb with their mighty battle axes and great cleavers.
Albrecht laughed to the High heavens and cried "Metatron the crucificed! Jabril the Guardian! Mikhael the Avenger! Sandalaphon the Gatekeeper! Azrael the Death Seeker! Israfil the Keeper of secrets! I call upon you Guardian Angels! Infust me with righteous might and strike these spawn of Orcus down!" with that Albrecht began to swing his Great Flail in a circular pattern to generate momentum and descended down the steps. The Orc warriors surged upwards and onwards like a avalanche moving up the stairs and they smashed into mighty Albrecht like a tidal wave, their axes and cleavers striking Albrecht but whereas their weapons would easily slice through a normal human warrior it was as if Albrecht's flesh was made of ice or stone and the weapons left scars in his rock hard flesh but could not rip him to shreds.
Albrecht in turn retaliated with wide strikes from his great flail, he swung his weapon with both of his potent hands, the long bronze head struck his foes with fury! Bones snapped from the force of their wildly swing flail, necks were snapped, jaws were ripped from their sockets to shower the stair case with bloody viscera of pulverized crimson bone and shattered teeth. Swarms of javelins where flung from the savage warriors in the back and they struck Albrecht but did not pass through his flesh up only hung onto his skin and hide like the feeble arrows of hunter gatherers trying to bring down a mighty steppe mammoth or wooly rhino. Great Blades and axes where chipped and some even cracked in half when striking the furious Albrecht wether this was something about the rocky hide of Albrecht or the shoddy craftsmanship of the Orcs is debatable but Albrecht was the mountain that the waves of blood thirsty barbarians crashed against and stubbornly he did not give an inch but began to push the swarm down the stairs inch by bloody inch with his relentless zeal and furious flail which swung wildly about it's ring and flanged pole.
From the Cathedral several peasants brought their warbows and crossbows to bear and brought a rain of arrows and bolts to cut the savage orcs who where flanking Albrecht the Flagellant in battle. In turn the orcs at the rear fired their arrows and javelins at the militia crossbowmen and even killed a few with their volleys of fire.
But Albrecht did not relent and the bloodier and more wounded he became the ever more savage and fierce was his divine rage! Arms where shattered as where knee caps, Skulls completly pulverized as pink brain matter and bloody skull material rained down from the cathedral stairs each time Albrecht smote an orc warrior with his sweeping strikes.
Eventually from the orcish ranks Gorm exploded outwards on his thundering Warg, smashing through them he brought his Halberd down in a charge and impaled Albrecht through the stomach, This charge was so violent it picked up the mighty Zealot and carried him up the stairs to only be impaled right into the cathedrals great oaken doors. Albrecht gripped the shaft of the halberd which was impaled in his stomach and gasped in pain to look up Gorm's malevolent eyes but this was already to late. Gorm swung his wrought iron maul into Albrecht face and connected with a vicious and sickening crack, bloody teeth spewed forth from Albrecht's puritan lips. Gorm bent in close, his hot, fetid breath could be smelt by Albrecht and made Albrecht retch at the stench. "Looks like he caught our selves a savage beast and ran it through! tell me "Bell Striker" where is your guardian Angels and sleeping star god now?" he chortled in his deep demonic baritone.
Albrecht smiled through bloody, broke teeth. "They have been inside all of use since the beginning! not that you bastard spawn of the giants would know though because you have never felt the touch of the High heavens!" with that Albrecht lifed his freed arm high and smashed it down on the Halberd's shaft, shattering it to pieces and grasping the end still stuck in his body and violently pulling it free in the same hand. He then rammed the jagged Halberd head deep into Fangrinder's jugular and arterial bloody sprey rocketed up onto the faces of Albrecht and Gorm. Gorm was flung back to the ground as was Albrecht, Fangrinder's violent death throes caused the fell beast to thrash violently with all it's power before it crashed to the ground and spasmed uncontrollably as copious amounts of blood poured forth from the impaled halberd and the beast quickly bleed out and perished.
Albrecht grasped his disemboweled stomach in one hand, his great flail in the other and propped himself up on the shaft of his deadly weapon. Slowly his wounds where knitting themselves shut but he was still exhausted from the heavy blood loss. Gorm also picked himself up with his tower shield and war maul at his sides. Gorm roared in defiance and charged Albrecht and slammed into him with great force but Albrecht held his ground. Gorm brought his war maul around in an arc to once again pulverize the jaw of Albrecht but Albrecht was prepared this time and violently intersected Gorm's strike of wrath with the shaft of the "Bell-striker" and shoved Gorm with great force knocking him backwards. Albrecht released his hand from the great tear wound in his stomach, several small intestines dangled lose on his accouterments. Arrows and crossbow bolts rained down on the horde of orcs, killing scores as the two mighty warriors fought their duel to the death on the stairs below.
Albrecht lifted bell striker into the Heavens and smashed it down on Gorm's Shield, the head of the wild weapon easily swung over the shield and struck Gorm in the shoulder, cracking armor and shattering his bones beneath. Gorm in turn retaliated by headbutting Albrecht right in between the eyes and shattering albrecht's nose and front teeth but this did not matter to the Flagellant. Albrecht again swung his Great Flail towards and smashed Gorm's shield and the weapon swung wildly to the right which Gorm retaliated by swing his war maul directly as Albrecht's head yet again. This time Albrecht ducked at the right time and the weapon sailed directly over his head completly missing his skull but Albrecht wrenched hard on Bell Striker and brought the wayward weapon back in trajectory to strike Gorm directly in the mouth. Ivory Fangs shattered in a bloody explosion, the entirety of Gorm's jaw cracked wide open and was partially ripped open from it's sockets to lie dangling agape below Gorm's face in a grotesque parody of a mouth. Gorm clenched his ruined mouth his his good hand but that did not save him because Albrecht swung the weapon behind his head with all his might and then smote Gorm with such ferocity that Gorm's great helm caved in with the enormity of the force, like a lightning bolt from the high heavens which shatters the mighty oaks but with one blow, a loud sickening crack echoed across the mountainous village walls as Gorm's skull was completely paved in and his blood and brains poured from the sides of his helmet down like a gory deluge. Gorm crashed into the Cathedral stairs like a meteorite from the blows and his blood flooded down the stairs in torrents.
The Fierce orc warriors did not run, they where not terrified but roared in defiance and surged upwards and onwards yet again. Desperate they where to slay Albrecht who had slain their warchief and claim themselves as the next warlord but Albrecht's broken smile through his shattered teeth worried them as they charged.
As they came within striking distance Albrecht roared "Gargoyles! To Me!" and suddenly burning oil and molten lead began to pour forth from the Abbey Gargoyles that littered the cathedral's walls. the Burning avalanche crashed into Albrecht and Orcs alike and yet they still fought on. Albrecht was not only wounded but covered in burning tar, to the onlookers eyes he appeared as a burning victim on the pyre or a flaming demon smiting his immolated foes with fury. The furious melee quickly ended as the orcs where either pulverized into bloody viscera or burned to crisps.
Albrecht groaned, grasping the haft of his weapon to prop himself up. He suddenly succumbed to his wounds and collapsed on the church stairs atop his mighty bell striker. Albrecht was gasping for air, exhausted and dying from his wounds. Quickly the remaining survivors picked him up from atop a mountain of slaughtered orcs and he drifted out of consciousness into a deep coma. the remaining peasantry dragged him into the cathedral so the Apothecary might tend to his wounds, Bell Striker was removed from his hands and hung above the Alter. The weapon was named the "Bell striker of the Martyr" in Albrecht's honor.
